DUBAI—It was a hell of a week in the Middle East. It began with Saudi Arabia and its friends imposing the modern equivalent of a feudal siege on tiny Qatar. Next came an assault on the Iranian parliament and a suicide bombing at the Tehran tomb of the man whose followers pioneered the tactic, both […]

ISLAMABAD—The wheels are already coming off Donald Trump’s grand Muslim anti-terror coalition and there is a quiet sigh of relief here in the Pakistani capital. It all appeared so simple when viewed from the glittering palaces of Trump’s Riyadh summit. The U.S., Saudi Arabia and dozens of other Muslims nations versus Iran in a “battle […]

It is the holy grail of the anti-Islam lobby: the designation of the Muslim Brotherhood as a “foreign terrorist organization” (FTO) by the U.S. government. The move could mean open season on American Muslims, cripple U.S. policy in the Muslim world and have implications for American domestic politics. Officials in President Donald Trump’s administration are […]

A memo to the president-election about the people he fears. “Islam hates us.” That was a recurring theme of your campaign, Mr. President-elect. And who can blame you? After all, your top advisors on Muslim affairs — Ann Coulter, Frank Gaffney, and Walid Phares — are card-carrying Islamophobes. Your incoming national security advisor, retired Army […]

There is much to fear from the president-elect, and from ourselves. I’ve seen it in Africa; in the Middle East; in Southeast Asia; and in the Caucasus. Tear away the thin veneer of civilization and we become the Lord of the Flies. The bullying, the assaults, the crude graffiti, and vile social media posts of the […]

An imperiled minority fears that latent demons of intolerance and violence have been released into the wild. By Lawrence Pintak. American Muslims and Arab-Americans woke up Wednesday morning with shock, fear, and a determination to tackle head-on the bigotry that helped propel Donald Trump to the White House. “The U.S. we knew yesterday is no […]

(Oct. 27, 2016) Donald Trump and ISIS. It was the Perfect Storm. The damage has left a barrage of emotions reverberating through the American Muslim community, from fear and suspicion to anger and defiance. Come November 9th, unless lightning strikes, Donald Trump will be, to use one of his favourite expressions, a loser. And the nation […]

(Sept. 30, 2016) It all seemed so easy back then. When American Marines landed in Beirut 34 years ago this month, they came, as their commander put it, “to help our Lebanese friends.” The problem was, friends can be fickle. The Reagan administration saw white hats and back hats in Lebanon, when in fact, they […]

EVERETT, Washington — Maybe it was jet lag. But the scene seemed a bit surreal: the African-American hawker selling “Donald ‘Fucking’ Trump” buttons, the young Hispanic guy with the “Build a Wall” T-shirt, the grinning fellow of Chinese descent strategically placed behind the podium. I had stepped off a flight from the United Arab Emirates […]

LAHORE, Pakistan — “How do we prevent the 5-year-old in Pakistan from becoming a radical?” U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan asked in an April interview. Imran Azhar has a ready answer: “You make him a hero. And you redefine what it is to be a hero.” Azhar is part of a small group of Pakistani […]